Pokemon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum felt like a huge level up at the time, as the leap from Game Boy Advance to Nintendo DS was simply huge. Many of the clamshell handheld's most striking hardware features were reflected in how they shaped generation four of this monster catcher – most notably the ease with which you could play with others both wirelessly and across the internet through WiFi.
For a series all about trading creatures and battling rivals, an increased emphasis on multiplayer felt natural, and the Nintendo DS made supporting that much easier than other online play solutions at that time. The power of the new hardware also meant a big graphical leap, fantastically animated and detailed new sprites bringing each Pokemon pal to life, and a new perspective added a 3D depth to the still 2D-style sprites which cleverly made the Pokemon Diamond, Pearl, and Platinum's Sinnoh Region feel more expansive than before. With battles also featuring more detailed systems (and neat touch screen controls), there's a reason that for many this fourth generation still offers some of the best Pokemon games you can play today. Read on as we count down the biggest new features this jump to Nintendo DS brought to Pokemon.
